


sky full of stars

by Lee_Mix



Category: Miraculous Ladybug
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-11-23
Updated: 2015-11-23
Packaged: 2018-05-03 02:12:20
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,918
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5272700
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Lee_Mix/pseuds/Lee_Mix
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>“You mean more to me than you’ll ever know. So how can I take the chance that I’ll lose that? What would I do if you know who I am underneath the mask doesn’t match up to how you think of Ladybug?” - Ladybug confesses her fears, Marinette spreads her wings, and the stage is under a canopy of stars winking down at them.</p>
            </blockquote>





	sky full of stars

Whisked away by the lull of Parisian nights, they leapt through the cobblestone streets and across the arched rooftops with a wild, reckless abandon. Not without rhyme or reason, of course, for the two of them were the eyes in the shadows, the angels in the skies that protected people from the literal nightmares. However, the way of good intentions came from youthful rebellion crafted and mended together with a welding purpose or cause.

This particular night started as a race, then a gamble on each other’s pride. Hopping from point A to point B, surprising the other within the nooks and crannies of the streets with no names. The names blended together and splattered a new identity with mannerisms and characteristics, and Ladybug honestly couldn’t tell the difference without the smells or looks anymore. 

Eventually, they reached a respite. Chat Noir perched, concealed within a shadowed part of the Eiffel Tower’s infrastructure, whilst she took a step out into the city of light and basked in the gentle hum of the cars below. 

“Are you tiring yet, my Lady? I think you should rest a while, even allow me the pleasure of carrying you. Maybe good luck doesn’t extend to natural talent after all?”

She turned to see that familiar smirk playing on those lips and folded her arms. “You  _are_ sweet to offer, Chat. But they say cats are tricky to reveal the truth, and you’ve never laid anything out without there being another meaning. Perhaps it’s  _you_ that’s tired?”

A laugh escaped her lips, and their banter ends on a high.

Ladybug sighed as she sat down, dangling her legs in the open air. The cityscape breezes whistled around her feet, urging her to retreat to the safety of the inside, but she had never been one to listen to nature.

“It’s… been over a year now, hasn’t it?”

“Mm.” His gentle hum grew louder as he took a seat beside her.

Ladybug folded her hands in her lap. “Do you think we’re any closer to finding where these attacks are coming from? So we can…”

_Go back to a normal life._

He shrugged, and for once, her backstreet incognito had nothing to give to the conversation. It didn’t surprise her at this point. Chat Noir would often try to change the subject whenever  _the end_ of their exploits was brought up, and he was awfully good at distracting her with his gleaming grin and whimsical banter.

But not this time.

“You don’t want it to end, do you?”

Chat Noir’s eyes widened as she spoke, and when he looked away from her, she knew she was right.

Ladybug chose not to speak as he ducked his head, let off a choked-up laugh and lifted his head up again. He covered his mouth, and she felt a knife slide between her ribs as she saw those wonderful eyes turn glassy, and begin to melt.

“To be honest, my Lady,” his voice sounded so  _sad,_ she wanted to cry along with him. “This… makes up a majority of my  _preferred_ life. And, no, that isn’t a terrible pun this time.”

Ladybug put an arm around his shoulders. “That would be pretty poor timing.”

“Mm.”

He was going back into that shell again. 

“Is your normal life so bad? Isn’t there anything that makes you happy?”

He looked up at her. “Of course, there are things that make me happy. I do like the school I go to, and the people I know there.  _They_ make me happy.  _People_ make me happy. But I… I only see them a few hours a day, my Lady. I don’t see them as often I do  _you_  or… or the people I live with.”

The invisible idea of  _I want to know who you are_ dangled in front of her eyes, and it terrified her.

Because she  _had_ thought about it. The few months leading up to that current moment had her mind toying with the idea of letting Chat Noir, her  _best_ friend (and maybe second crush), know her real identity. Moments had bled into her mind, scenarios depicting alternate realities of what would possibly happen.

All endings had been nothing more than a disappointment for him. 

She wasn’t sure she could bear that.

“You are kind to listen to my trivialities, Ladybug.” His voice startled her, and she barely recovered from the jolt. “But I’m sure there are other things you’d rather listen to.”

“What?” 

“Maybe we could–”

“No, don’t change the subject.” The very thought of his entire emotional stress being  _trivial_ to him had her mind reeling. “You think your sadness doesn’t mean anything to me?”

The cat had his tongue. To his credit, he recovered quickly. “I wouldn’t want to burden you.”

She clenched her fist. “ _Burden_ me? Chat, you  _can_ talk to me about these things. You can trust me to listen! We’re friends, aren’t we?”

Something in him snapped. A cord, a chain, but his frown  _worried_ her.

It was what he said next that was worse.

“How can I, when you don’t trust  _me_ to listen to  _you?_ ”

Fate washed her mouth with sandpaper until she was sure the sides of her lips were bleeding out with liquid trails of karma. 

“You don’t want to reveal your identity to me. That hurts, but I respect that.” He ran a hand through his hair. “But whenever  _you’re_ sad, whenever  _you_ have problems, you get mad when I try to help you! I get that you have to deal with that, I do, but… sometimes, I even feel like you’re ashamed of me. So you can’t get angry with me when I refuse something  _you do as second nature._ ”

_Ashamed of you?_

Of her rebellious braveheart? Her sweet-talking street cat? How could she be ashamed of someone so wonderful?

Perhaps the tension that dug into her skin had been long-coming. There had been times where she had pushed him away for the sake of her own insecurities. Had they been hurting him all this time? Had she been hurting him?

The very thought made her sick.

“Chat…”

“I’m sorry, my Lady. I didn’t mean to snap.” He rose up and looked away from her. “Forget anything I said. Shall we get back to–”

“You’re right.”

She stopped him with a pathetic clutch of her hand. 

“My Lady…?” He crouched down beside her, taking her hand in his, and his voice coaxed out more sympathy than she deserved.

Hot iron bars burned trails for the tears down her face. She  _knew_ she was blubbering, barely holding back sniffles, and the entire feeling was such a rush she could barely contain it.

“You silly,  _silly_ cat.” Somewhere in her, she began to laugh. “How could you think I’m ashamed of you? You’re… you’re wonderful. You put up with me hurting you and don’t even  _say_ you’re in pain. How could I know someone so brilliant that would lay down his life for  _me?”_

“I’d do it in a heartbeat.”

“I know. You’ve proven that, even though I don’t deserve it. Deserve  _you._ ”

“My Lady–”

“You mean more to me than you’ll  _ever_ know. Chat.” It was a half-baked confession, with the ingredients still raw. But they’re all she had. “So how can I take the chance that I’ll lose that? What would I do if you know who I am underneath the mask doesn’t match up to how you think of Ladybug?”

All that filled her ears was the melody of humming cars and winking streetlights. Cityscape breezes dulled, and Ladybug realized how  _close_ Chat Noir was to her. His hands on her shoulders, his chest shielding her from the glare of the city. It took her a while to realise he was  _hugging_ her.

“I think we’re both kinds of stupid, right?”

She laughed into his collarbone. “Yeah. When did we get so  _serious?_ ”

“Well, at least we’re arguing with each other. Put a genius against an idiot, and the idiot will just drag the genius down to his level and beat him with years of experience.”

Chat Noir embraced her tighter as the laughter died down, stroking her hair and whispering words of comfort until she managed to stop her trembling. Her tears dried into red rims around her eyes, more so noticeable than the mask, but she didn’t care. 

She placed her hands on his chest and pushed him back a little.

“…Tomorrow.”

He blinked at her. “It’ll be raining?”

She batted his chest. “No,  _tomorrow._ Are you free?”

He mulled it over. “I think so. Why?”

A heavy blush settled on her face. “C-Can we meet by the canal, where we fought Evillustrator? You remember, don’t you?”

 _“Of course,_  I do. But why–”

“A-And… don’t come as Chat Noir.”

She felt him stiffen. He didn’t speak for around a minute. He just gazed at her, mouth hung open, and his breathing shaky.

“You… want to know my identity?”

“I want us  _both_ to know the other part of ourselves.” Ladybug bit her lip. “B-But I need tonight to prepare for it. To process things. To… you know. But I can’t… I can’t chicken out. Would you be alright with that? Maybe around 7:AM, before the rush hour starts?”

The smile that curved his lips was worth any insecurity. Bright, bold, and completely  _beautiful._

“Yeah.” He breathed, holding her even closer. “I’d love that.”

 

* * *

 

“Adrien, you might want to man up a little. You’re acting like you’ve got ants in your trousers.”

Though his glare did nothing to dissuade the kwami from his teasing (and he merrily went on his way to nibbling at his cheese again), the little ladybugs fluttering around in his gut continued to tap against his bones. Daybreak hadn’t quite reached the city yet, and the early hum of traffic created only a partial distraction to what was about to happen.

Ladybug.

He was going to  _see_ Ladybug. As Adrien.

Adrien stuffed his hands in his pockets, heat rising to his face. He’d had his theories on  _who_ she might be, and seeing her display last night had clocked him in  _somewhat,_ but what if she didn’t  _see_ that? What if she was disappointed? Now he knew why she was so nervous–

“Ch…Chat? A-Are you here?”

The small, timid voice broke his thoughts. 

She was right behind him.

His breathing lodged in his throat, as he took a peek behind the wall he had leaned against. 

Time stopping wasn’t ever literal, but he guessed whatever deities there were, they were being kind _._ Because adorned in a red-spotted sundress, head-to-toe, was his Lady.

Ladybug.

_Marinette._

In hindsight, it was rather obvious. They were the same height, had the same  _hairstyle,_ the same eye colour, the same cheekbones, the same…

“A-Adrien?”

The same…

“Are you…?”

Who was he kidding?

They were one  _in_ the same.

Slowly, he stepped out of the shadows of the building and went to meet her halfway. She was clutching a rather large bag, and the smells of freshly-baked goods wafted into his nose. A memory jogged that she’d mentioned her parents owned a bakery, but maybe Marinette had made those herself?

Her face was flushed when they met halfway. In the middle of the cobblestone streets dotted with greenery, with the morning air biting at their skin and the sky still painted with night’s colours, four people became two.

Gently, he took her hand, and time began to flow again.

“Hello there, my Lady.” 

**Author's Note:**

> Oh look. A reveal fic. Because that’s never been done by anyone before. ^_^


End file.
